Director: Ridley Scott
Cast: Matt Damon, Jessica Chastain, Kristen Wiig, Jeff Daniels, Michael Pena, Sean Bean, Kate Mara, Sebastian Stan, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Aksel Hennie, Mackenzie Davis, Donald Glover
Rating: 12A
Running Time: 141 mins
Release Date: September 30th, 2015
Despite its long running time, THE MARTIAN never overstays its welcome; its enjoyment starts and ends with wondering and then witnessing how astronaut Mark Watney will survive being left behind on Mars after a NASA mission. It’s an enjoyably solid blockbuster that’s aided by a compelling and talented ensemble, led by the reliable Matt Damon.
Surprisingly the best thing about THE MARTIAN is how funny it is. Damon, as astronaut Mark Watney, carefully toes the line between charismatic and dramatic, giving Watney a high likability that’s important to a central role that is not only the anchor of the film but one that leaves Damon with the most screen time. Fortunately the film itself is aware of this and so instead cuts away all the unnecessary melodrama and sadness; its less a film about the suffocating isolation that one would feel when deserted on a planet and more of a celebration of Watney’s spirit and ever needed humor in the face of a momentous challenge. While this strips away what should be some high tense drama, it instead replaces it with unmovable optimism, which proves to be a delightful change of pace.
Ridley Scott also returns to the genre that started his career and after a less than pleasing spate of films; PROMETHEUS, THE COUNSELLOR and EXODUS: GODS AND KINGS, it’s good to see him back in a genre which he knows and loves. Combined with cinematographer Dariusz Wolski, who Ridley has worked with on the previously mentioned films, THE MARTIAN is a gorgeous piece of cinema; an over reliance on CGI would have taken away from the films wondrous imagery but instead Ridley has opted to use sets as much as possible, with CGI only there to help in the background. Watch as small storms generate off in the distance as Damon walks around the surface of Mars or small twisters rumble across the bare surface, these small details manage to bring the planet to life, turning Mars into its own character that shares the screen with Damon.
While Damon is the centerpiece of the film, it’s really the whole cast that alleviate the film and manage to engage you. Jessica Chastain, Michael Pena, Sebastian Stan, Kate Mara and Aksel Hennie bring heaps of chemistry to the screen as the crew that unfortunately left Watney on Mars, believing him to be dead. There’s a real sense of companionship among them that stays there throughout the film and their interactions with each other are some of the best scenes in it. Likewise, Jeff Daniels, Chiwetel Ejiofor and Sean Bean carry some of the dramatic moments as the NASA figures who are trying to get Watney back to earth. Donald Glover also appears as a goofy astrodynamicist who, along with Kristen Wiig, give the film some good laughs.
The films commitment to realism and explaining of science means that THE MARTIAN is partly a science lesson stretched into film length but that’s not a bad thing; Watney talks into a camera to keep track of how long he’s been trapped on Mars, while it could be in danger of being lazy exposition that keeps the audience in the loop but instead is a fun way for Damon to interact with the audience. The films celebration and love of science is infectious; for the first hour you’re watching Matt Damon teach the audience various scientific lessons or, as Watney phrases it, you’re watching him “science the sh*t out of this”.
Only faltering in its final hour where events seem to slow down completely to allow the plot to catch itself up and an ending which unfortunately is so abrupt it squanders some of the drama that has been building throughout, THE MARTIAN is a fine return for Ridley Scott and a stylish, intelligent sci-fi.
Verdict
